Strap for portable device

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are a holder strap for a portable device, and a fixation guider for guiding the strap through an inserting hole of the portable device in order to fix the strap at the portable device without using an additional commercial tool. The strap can be used to hang the portable device on a hand, a neck, a bag, a purse, or the like. The fixation guider can be readily inserted into the inserting hole of the portable device. The fixation guider for the strap includes a strap holding portion for enclosing and holding the strap therein, and a projection portion extending from the strap holding portion and configured to insert in the inserting hole of the portable device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This application claims priority of Korean Patent Application No. 2004-42513, filed on Jun. 10, 2004 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a strap for a portable device, and more particularly, to a strap and a fixation guider for guiding the strap for a portable device into an inserting hole of the portable device, wherein the strap is used for hanging the portable device, such as a portable communicator, a portable radio, a compact camera, and a portable game machine etc., from a hand, a neck, a bag, a purse, or any other fixture or device.

2. Description of the Related Art

A portable device strap 50, as depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, comprises a hanging string 52 and a connecting string 55. The hanging string 52 is for hanging a portable device on a hand, a neck, a bag, or a purse and the connecting string 55 is attached to a portable device, such as a mobile phone or a camera.

The hanging string 52 has a loop shape with a suitable length and width, and the connecting string 55 has a similar loop shape but is generally shorter and narrower than the string 52. The hanging string 52 and the connecting string 55 are typically coupled in a single body by bonding or sealing both ends of the hanging string 52 after inserting an end of the connecting string 55 between both ends of the hanging string 52.

The strap 50 is attached to a portable device 2 after inserting into an inserting hole 5 of the portable device 2. More specifically, in order to connect the portable device, the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 is passed through a strap path P formed between the inserting hole 5 of the portable device 2 and a supporting rod 6 crossing the inserting hole 5, the hanging string 52 is then passed through the loop on the tip of the connecting string 55 and is tightened against the supporting rod 6.

However, the connecting string 55 generally does not have sufficient strength and elasticity since it is typically made of fabric. Therefore, the connecting string 55 is not readily inserted into the inserting hole 5 having a curved space, and even if the connecting string 55 is inserted into the inserting hole 5, it is not easily withdrawn from the inserting hole 5.

Especially, as the size of the portable device 2 decreases, the size of the inserting hole 5 also generally decreases and it becomes more difficult to pass the connecting string 55 through the inserting hole 5.

To solve this problem, the connecting string 55 inserted in the inserting hole 5 can be pulled through the inserting hole 5 using a pin. However, there is a drawback in that an additional tool such as a pin is necessary, and there are risks of getting injured by the sharp pin and losing the pin since it is small.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a fixation guider for guiding a strap of a portable device so that the strap can be readily inserted into an inserting hole of the portable device without an additional commercial fixation tool.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a fixation guider for guiding a strap to fix at a portable device comprises a strap holding portion, and a projection portion extending from the strap holding portion. The strap holding portion is configured to enclose and hold the strap, and the projection portion is configured to insert into an inserting hole of the portable device.

The projection portion may include an upper plate and a lower plate. At least portions of the upper plate and the lower plate are preferably bonded or bound together.

The upper plate and the lower plate are connected with the strap holding portion. The strap holding portion can surround a portion of the strap for holding the strap therein.

The fixation guider may have suitable strength, elasticity and flexibility so that it can be moved along a curved or small space of the inserting hole formed at the portable device.

Also, the strap holding portion can be formed in a single body with the upper plate and the lower plate, and the upper plate and the lower plate may be bonded by an adhesive disposed at least a portion between the upper plate and the lower plate.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a strap for a portable device comprises an elongated strap for attaching to the portable device, and a fixation guider configured to attach at the elongated strap, wherein the fixation guider includes a strap holding portion for holding the strap with the strap holding portion, and a projection portion extending from the strap holding portion, the projection portion having sufficient strength and flexibility and dimensioned such that the projection portion can pass a small insertion path formed at the portable device in order to fix the strap to the portable device.

The elongated strap preferably includes a first loop and a second loop, with the second loop having a length shorter than the first loop, and the fixation guider is configured to attach preferably at the second loop of the elongated strap.

The fixation guider of the strap is preferably formed of a plastic or polymer material. The fixation guider may also be formed of other suitable material.

The strap holding portion may have at least one notch formed at the strap holding portion or other means for facilitating removal of the fixation guider after fixation of the strap to the portable device.

The portable device may be a camera or other compact and portable products.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portable device with a conventional strap attached thereto;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a process of attaching the conventional strap of FIG. 1 to a portable device;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a strap coupled with a fixation guider before attaching to a portable device, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 4A through 4C are perspective views illustrating a method of coupling the fixation guider with the strap of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 5A through 5D are perspective views illustrating a method of fixing the strap with a portable device using the fixation guider of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating another embodiment of the fixation guider of the invention coupled with the strap.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown.

Referring to FIG. 3, a fixation guider 100 for guiding installation of a strap 50 to portable devices comprises a strap holding portion 120, and a projection portion 101. The strap 50 is typically formed of a loop shaped fabric cord or string for hanging a portable device on a hand, a neck, a bag, or other fixtures or the like after fixing to a suitable structure of the portable device.

The projection portion 101 extends from the strap holding portion 120 and guides the strap to be readily inserted into the inserting hole 5.

As shown in FIG. 3, the projection portion 101 may include an upper plate 110 and a lower plate 130 each extending from the strap holding portion 120 and bound together.

The strap 50 typically includes a hanging string 52 that hangs the portable devices on a hand, a neck, a bag, a purse, or the like, and a connecting string 55 of suitable dimension for fixing at the portable device 2, such as a mobile phone, camera, or the like after insertion into the inserting hole 5. As shown in FIG. 3, the strap holding portion 120 surrounds a portion of the connecting string 55 of the strap 50. However, the strap 50 is not limited to the configurations as described above, and the present invention can be applied to any configuration of the strap 50 as long as it can be inserted to the inserting hole 5 for coupling with such a portable device.

Accordingly, referring to FIG. 3, the fixation guider 100 for the strap 50 can be easily passed through a strap path P formed about the inserting hole 5 and the supporting rod 6 which crosses the inserting hole 5. The user then pulls the fixation guider 100, with the strap 50 connected thereto, from the outside. Thus, the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 coupled with the fixation guider 100 can be easily passed through the inserting hole 5.

The fixation guider 100 has sufficient strength and elasticity to be easily inserted into the inserting hole 5 and passed along an inner circumference of the inserting hole 5 with flexibility. The fixation guider 100 of an inserting strap is preferably formed of a plastic or polymer material having suitable strength and elasticity. However, the fixation guide of the invention can be made of other suitable materials, such as hard paper, treated paper, paper or plastic material with a metal string core, etc., as long as they can provide enough strength and resiliency to guide such insertion of the carrying strap for the portable device.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the fixation guider 100 for the strap 50 can be formed in a single body. That is, as depicted in FIGS. 4A through 4C, the fixation guider 100 for the strap 50 can be unitarily formed having the strap holding portion 120 between the upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130. Then, a part of the connecting string 55 is placed on the strap holding portion 120 as shown in FIG. 4B.

The upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130 of the fixation guider 100 is connected, for example, by bonding such that the strap holding portion 120 surrounds the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 in its closed space.

To achieve this, an adhesive 140 is applied on at least one of a lower surface 110 b of the upper plate 110 and an upper surface 130 u of the lower plate 130. The adhesive 140 may be in the form of a double-sided tape. In this case, the upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130 can be readily bonded by pressing the upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130 after attaching the double-sided tape to one of the lower surface 110 b of the upper plate 110 and the upper surface 130 u of the lower plate 130.

Also, the strap holding portion 120 preferably has an interim portion preset to a U shape between the upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130 for providing a space when the upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130 are connected together. The U shape also allows the connecting string 55 to be easily positioned on the strap holding portion 120 and to be easily removed after passing through the inserting hole 5 of the portable device 2 due to a gap between the strap holding portion 120 and the connecting string 55.

The fixation guider 100 for the strap 50 is removed after the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 is passed through the inserting hole 5. In order to readily remove the fixation guider 100, a parting notch 122 can be formed on a portion of the strap holding portion 120. That is, the fixation guider 100 for the strap 50 can be readily removed by twisting the strap holding portion 120 since the notch 122 can be easily broken if a small torque is applied to the fixation guider 100. Instead of providing such a parting notch, the fixation guider of the invention may have other configurations which can be easily removed from the strap, or otherwise can provide suitable means for facilitating removal of the fixation guider from the strap.

The portable device 2 as depicted in FIG. 3 can be a camera, for example. As the size of a camera becomes smaller, the size of the inserting hole 5 also becomes smaller. However, the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 can be readily passed through the inserting hole 5 due to the use of the fixation guider 100 of the invention.

Referring to FIGS. 5A through 5C, a method of inserting the strap 50 into the portable device using the fixation guider 100 will be described.

To insert the strap 50 into the portable device, first, the upper plate 110 and the lower plate 130 of the fixation guider 100, with the strap 50, attached within the strap holding portion 120, are inserted into the inserting hole 5. Since the strap holding portion 120 holds the connecting string 55 of the strap 50, the connecting string 55 follows readily into the inserting hole 5 with the aid of the fixation guider 100.

When a suitable force is applied to the fixation guider 100 in a direction toward the inserting hole 5, a portion of the fixation guider 100 passes through the inserting hole 5 and comes out along the strap path P between the inserting hole 5 and the supporting rod 6.

At this time, as depicted in FIG. 5B, the fixation guider 100 is pulled using a hand, and the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 coupled with the fixation guider 100 exits the inserting hole 5 along the strap path P as depicted in FIG. 5C.

Then, the opposite end of the hanging string 52 is passed through a loop formed at the exited end of the connecting string 55 (see FIG. 5D), and the connecting string 55 is pulled and fastened to the supporting rod 6. Accordingly, the strap 50 and the portable device 2 are readily coupled with the aid of the fixation guider of the invention. The fixation guider 100 of the strap 50 can be removed from the connecting string 55 by applying a twisting force to the notch 122 formed in the fixation guider 100 or by cutting the fixation guider 100 using a cutting device.

With reference to FIG. 6, alternative embodiments of the fixation guider of the invention are described herein. The fixation guider can be in form of a projection member 101 with string 160 at least partially twisted to form a suitable guide structure. As shown, projection member 101 forms a strap holding portion 120 by the string 160 for holding the strap 50.

The fixation guide (i.e., projection member 101) can be passed through a strap path P formed about the inserting hole 5 and the supporting rod 6 which crosses the inserting hole. The user then pulls the fixation guider 101 from the outside. Thus, the connecting string 55 of the strap 50 coupled with the fixation guider 101 can be passed through the inserting hole 5 in a manner similar to that described above in association with FIGS. 5A-5D.

Similar to the fixation guider 100 of FIG. 3, the string type fixation guider 101 forms a structure having sufficient strength and elasticity to be easily inserted into the inserting hole 5 and passed along an inner circumference of the inserting hole 5 with flexibility.

The fixation or insertion guider of the invention may have a different structure, construction, and configuration than those described above as long as it can provide suitable strength, resiliency, and elasticity to easily guide the insertion of the holder strap into a strap insertion hole or path of a portable device.

It is envisioned that the fixation or insertion guider of the invention can be provided to the customers of such a portable device along with the strap as separate parts. Then, it is up to the customers to connect the fixation guider with the strap as shown FIGS. 4B and 4C, for example. However, the fixation guider of the invention can be preassembled with the strap by the manufacture of the portable devices before selling or supply to the customers. Then, the customers can omit the connection process of the two parts before fixing to the portable device.

The use of a fixation guider for a strap according to the present invention allows simple coupling of the strap to a portable device since the fixation guider for the portable device guides the strap so that it can be easily inserted into and pass through an insertion hole of the portable device.

Moreover, such a fixation guider for the strap allows coupling of the strap to the portable device without using a sharp pin or special tools, thereby securing a safety.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims. 

1. A fixation guider for a holder strap of a portable device, comprising: a strap holding portion for holding the strap with the strap holding portion; and a projection portion extending from the strap holding portion, the projection portion having sufficient strength and flexibility and being dimensioned such that the projection portion can pass a small insertion path formed at the portable device in order to fix the strap to the portable device.
 2. The fixation guider of claim 1, wherein the projection portion includes a lower plate and an upper plate at least partially joined with each other.
 3. The fixation guider of claim 2, wherein the strap holding portion is formed in a single body with the upper plate and the lower plate, and the upper plate and the lower plate are bound with an adhesive disposed between the upper plate and the lower plate.
 4. The fixation guider of claim 2, wherein the fixation guider is formed of a plastic or polymer material.
 5. The fixation guider of claim 2, wherein the fixation guider is formed of paper.
 6. The fixation guider of claim 1, wherein the fixation guider is formed of twisted string.
 7. The fixation guider of claim 1, wherein the fixation guider is configured to be easily removed from the strap.
 8. The fixation guider of claim 7, wherein at least one notch is formed at the strap holding portion for removal of the fixation guider.
 9. The fixation guider of claim 1, wherein the portable device is a camera.
 10. A strap for a portable device comprising: an elongated strap for attaching to the portable device; and a fixation guider configured to attach at the elongated strap, said fixation guider including a strap holding portion for holding the strap with the strap holding portion, and a projection portion extending from the strap holding portion, the projection portion having sufficient strength and flexibility and dimensioned such that the projection portion can pass a small insertion path formed at the portable device in order to fix the strap to the portable device.
 11. The strap of claim 10, wherein the elongated strap includes a first loop and a second loop, with the second loop having a length shorter than the first loop, and the fixation guider is configured to attach at the second loop of the elongated strap.
 12. The strap of claim 10, wherein the fixation guider is formed of a plate or sheet.
 13. The strap of claim 10, wherein the fixation guider is formed of a string.
 14. The strap of claim 10, wherein the fixation guider is formed of a plastic or polymer material.
 15. The strap of claim 10, wherein the fixation guider further includes a means for facilitating removal of the fixation guider from the elongated strap. 